scholarly journals On the Environmental and Social Sustainability of Urban Bus Transport Practices: The EU Case

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristina López ◽  
Rocío Ruíz-Benítez ◽  
Carmen Vargas-Machuca
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Life Quality ◽  
Hierarchical Structures ◽  
Social Sustainability ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Urban Bus ◽  
Bus Transport

Logistics in urban areas are currently suffering a radical transformation due to increasingly population concentration and the massive use of cars as the preferred transport mode. These issues have resulted in higher pollution levels in urban environments and traffic congestion impacting the world globally. Facilitating the use of sustainable transport modes is widely regarded as a necessity to cope with these adverse effects on citizens’ life quality. Hence, some regions, as the European Union, are encouraging bus transport firms to make their business models more environmentally and socially sustainable. The aim of this research is thus to explore how practices adopted by urban bus companies can improve cities’ sustainability. With this in mind, a combined Importance Performance Analysis (IPA)-Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method was applied. In this way, both environmental and social sustainability effects of developed practices were represented through hierarchical structures separately. Subsequently, importance and performance ratings of practices in each sustainability dimension were estimated, and thus two IPA grids were generated. These grids support managers in the establishment of more effective action plans to improve logistics sustainability in cities. Findings also provide guidance to governments on the practices that should be promoted in future urban mobility plans.

scholarly journals On the Environmental and Social Sustainability of Technological Innovations in Urban Bus Transport: The EU Case

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 1413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristina López ◽  
Rocío Ruíz-Benítez ◽  
Carmen Vargas-Machuca
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Life Quality ◽  
Hierarchical Structures ◽  
Social Sustainability ◽  
Technological Innovations ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Urban Bus ◽  
Bus Transport

Logistics in urban areas are currently suffering a radical transformation due to increasing population concentration and the massive use of cars as the preferred transport mode. These issues have resulted in higher pollution levels in urban environments and traffic congestion, impacting the world globally. Facilitating the use of sustainable transport modes is widely regarded as a necessity to cope with these adverse effects on citizens’ life quality. Hence, some regions, such as the European Union, are encouraging bus transport firms to make their business models more environmentally and socially sustainable. The aim of this research is thus to explore how technological innovations adopted by urban bus companies can improve cities’ sustainability. With this in mind, a combined Importance Performance Analysis (IPA)–Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method was applied. In this way, their environmental and social sustainability effects were separately represented through hierarchical structures. Subsequently, the importance and performance ratings of technological innovations in each sustainability dimension were estimated, and thus two IPA grids were generated. These grids support managers in the establishment of more effective action plans to improve logistics sustainability in cities. The findings also provide guidance to governments on the technological innovations that should be promoted in future urban mobility plans.

scholarly journals Development of a biking index for measuring Mediterranean cities mobility

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
L. Ros-McDonnell ◽  
M.V. De-la-Fuente ◽  
D. Ros-McDonnell ◽  
M. Cardós
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Field Data ◽  
Survey Methodology ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Urban Transport ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Sustainable Mobility ◽  
Mobility Index ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Motorized Vehicles

<p>The European Union, its member states and local authorities have been working for long time on the design of solutions for future sustainable mobility. The promotion of a sustainable and affordable urban transport contemplates the bicycle as a mean of transport. The reasons for analysing the cycling mobility in urban areas, has its origin in the confrontation with motorized vehicles, as a sustainable response to the environment. In this context of sustainable mobility, the research team has studied the use of bicycles in Mediterranean cities, specifically in coastal tourist areas.  The present work shows the development of a mobility index oriented to the bicycle, transport that competes with the private vehicle. By means of a survey methodology, the research group proceeded to collect field data and the subsequent analysis of them, for the development of a mobility index adapted to bicycle mobility, and with possibilities to adapt to urban environments.</p>

scholarly journals Smart-Mobility Services for Climate Mitigation in Urban Areas: Case Studies of Baltic Countries and Germany

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4127
Author(s):  
Gabriele Cepeliauskaite ◽  
Benno Keppner ◽  
Zivile Simkute ◽  
Zaneta Stasiskiene ◽  
Leon Leuser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Transportation ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Universal Access ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Transport Sector ◽  
Climate Mitigation ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Baltic Countries ◽  
Smart Mobility ◽  
Negative Environmental Impact

The transport sector is one of the largest contributors of CO2 emissions and other greenhouse gases. In order to achieve the Paris goal of decreasing the global average temperature by 2 °C, urgent and transformative actions in urban mobility are required. As a sub-domain of the smart-city concept, smart-mobility-solutions integration at the municipal level is thought to have environmental, economic and social benefits, e.g., reducing air pollution in cities, providing new markets for alternative mobility and ensuring universal access to public transportation. Therefore, this article aims to analyze the relevance of smart mobility in creating a cleaner environment and provide strategic and practical examples of smart-mobility services in four European cities: Berlin (Germany), Kaunas (Lithuania), Riga (Latvia) and Tartu (Estonia). The paper presents a systematized literature review about the potential of smart-mobility services in reducing the negative environmental impact to urban environments in various cities. The authors highlight broad opportunities from the European Union and municipal documents for smart-mobility initiatives. The theoretical part is supplemented by socioeconomic and environmental descriptions, as well as experience, related to smart-mobility services in the four cities selected.

scholarly journals Podstawowe determinanty jakości życia mieszkańców wsi i miast po akcesji Polski do Unii Europejskiej = Basic determinants of rural and urban inhabitants’ life quality after Poland’s accession to the European Union

2018 ◽  
Vol 52 ◽  
pp. 23-38
Author(s):  
Barbara Chmielewska ◽  
Józef Stanisław Zegar
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Subjective Evaluation ◽  
Life Quality ◽  
Living Conditions ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Central Statistical ◽  
Main Determinants

The purpose of the study is to assess changes concerning main determinants of rural and urban inhabitants’ life quality in the period after Poland’s accession to the European Union (years 2006–2017). The study was conducted basing on results of the European Survey on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) and household budgets of the Central Statistical Office of Poland. Assessment of rural population’s life quality was based on indicators characterizing the unbiased living conditions (income, expenses, infrastructure, environment, housing and furnishings) as well as subjective evaluation. However, in assessing the life quality, environmental and climatic advantages of rural areas were not taken into account. Basic indicators relate to individuals or households. Life quality in rural areas is lower than in urban ones, which is primarily due to inferior income of rural residents. Furthermore, the level of expenditure is lower, mainly regarding high rank needs. Rural areas are characterized by lower equipment in basic technical infrastructure and durable – especially modern goods – in comparison to urban areas. Inhabitants of rural areas subjectively assess their life quality to be worse than the urban population. They also believe that possibility of satisfying their needs is lower than in cities.

scholarly journals New Energy Policy Directions in the European Union Developing the Concept of Smart Cities

Smart Cities ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 241-252
Author(s):  
Adrian Tantau ◽  
Ana-Maria Iulia Şanta
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Life Quality ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Living Conditions ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Energy Policies ◽  
New Energy

In the context of the European Union promoting clean energy, sustainability and better living conditions for its citizens, the development of smarts cities is an initiative supported at the European Union level, in line with the new energy policies of the European Union promoted by the package “Clean Energy for All Europeans”. The concept of smart cities gains increasing importance in the European Union, a fact that is reflected in the project “European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities” of the European Commission. Smart cities are a practical example of how the new energy policies shape the lives of the European Union citizens, trying to improve it. As a consequence, new business models arise in big cities, involving the use of technology for better living conditions. These new, technology-based business models are important, as they improve the life quality of the inhabitants, they reduce the climate change impact, and they contribute as well to job creation in the IT-industry, promoting innovation. They have as well a social impact, as they bring experts from energy policies, business, economics, legal and IT together in order to project a new type of city—the smart city. The research hypothesis of the present article is that there is a high acceptance towards the concept of smart cities at the European Union level and that this concept could be implemented with the help of information technology and of artificial intelligence. This way, legal provisions, economic measures and IT-tools work together in order to create synergy effects for better life quality of the citizens of the European Union. The research hypothesis is analyzed by means of the questionnaire as a qualitative research method and is as well assessed by using case studies (e.g., Austria, Finland, Romania). The novelty of the case studies is that the development of smart cities is analyzed due to the new trend towards sustainability in two countries with different living conditions in the European Union.

scholarly journals Assessing the Performance of Modal Interchange for Ensuring Seamless and Sustainable Mobility in European Cities

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 1001
Author(s):  
Elisa Conticelli ◽  
Gianluca Gobbi ◽  
Paula Isabella Saavedra Rosas ◽  
Simona Tondelli
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Noise Pollution ◽  
Urban Systems ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Sustainable Mobility ◽  
Design Solutions ◽  
Reduction Of Co2

In the European Union, more than 70% of the population lives in urban areas. Achieving more efficient and low-carbon mobility is crucial to ensuring urban systems are sustainable and tackling important challenges, such as reduction of CO2 emissions, air and noise pollution, and traffic congestion. Identifying effective strategies and design solutions that boost multimodal mobility and effective interchange among different sustainable means of transport can be a significant contribution in this area. This paper presents an easy-to-use methodology to assess the performance of policy measures and design solutions-oriented to foster modal interchange, with special regard to the configuration of the interchange hubs. The methodology is based on identifying key factors necessary to ensure an efficient multimodal interchange and the different types of interchanges that are frequently present in the urban realm. By grouping the key factors into nine different domains, and by weighing the key factors in relation to their importance, the methodology creates a decision support system to assess the performance of the current interchange, as well as of different planning and design scenarios. This methodology has been developed in the framework of the Interreg Europe MATCH-UP project and is conceived to support both designers and decision-makers whenever they have to reorganise existing transport hubs and policies, or design and plan new ones.

scholarly journals A model to identify urban traffic congestion hotspots in complex networks

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (10) ◽  
pp. 160098 ◽  
Author(s):  
Albert Solé-Ribalta ◽  
Sergio Gómez ◽  
Alex Arenas
Keyword(s):  
Complex Networks ◽  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Urban Traffic ◽  
Traffic Data ◽  
Time Data ◽  
Proposed Model ◽  
And Control ◽  
Real Traffic

The rapid growth of population in urban areas is jeopardizing the mobility and air quality worldwide. One of the most notable problems arising is that of traffic congestion. With the advent of technologies able to sense real-time data about cities, and its public distribution for analysis, we are in place to forecast scenarios valuable for improvement and control. Here, we propose an idealized model, based on the critical phenomena arising in complex networks, that allows to analytically predict congestion hotspots in urban environments. Results on real cities’ road networks, considering, in some experiments, real traffic data, show that the proposed model is capable of identifying susceptible junctions that might become hotspots if mobility demand increases.

scholarly journals Modeling the Internalization of External Costs of Transport

1997 ◽  
Vol 1576 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret M. O’Mahony ◽  
Kieran J. Kirwan ◽  
Sean McGrath
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Travel Demand ◽  
Capital City ◽  
External Costs ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Peak Period ◽  
Function Type ◽  
Trinity College Dublin ◽  
Regulatory Policies

Increases in traffic congestion and pollution levels in urban areas in Europe have resulted in the need to develop reliable and transferable methods of assessing the environmental and social effects of transport pricing and other regulatory policies. To achieve this, it is necessary to quantify the marginal social costs of transport as a function of travel demand and then to obtain the optimum marginal social cost by maximization of utility subject to budget constraints. The work conducted by Trinity College, Dublin, on a project (TRENEN) funded by the European Union JOULE II Non-Nuclear Energy Program is described. The project involved the development and calibration of an optimization model, the TRENEN model, based on welfare economics to address fundamental issues relating to the external costs of transport. The determination of the optimum function type used to represent the transport demand–delay relationship (which was obtained using an existing four-stage network model) for input to the TRENEN model is described. The TRENEN model is quite different from network modeling in that it is fundamentally macrolevel in its approach and works in an economic framework rather than at a traffic network level. Also discussed is a calibration of the TRENEN model for Dublin, the capital city of Ireland. Dublin currently experiences high levels of traffic congestion, particularly in the morning peak period, resulting from a heavy demand for car travel and the poor level of service associated with public transport. The possibility of using the TRENEN model, which addresses the issue of “social equilibrium” at a macrolevel, in conjunction with the more traditional “network equilibrium” approach used by traditional four-stage microsimulation modeling techniques, is discussed.

scholarly journals Improving Energy Efficiency by Advanced Traffic Control Systems

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miroslav Vujić ◽  
Ivana Šemanjski ◽  
Pero Vidan
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Control Systems ◽  
Fuel Consumption ◽  
Traffic Control ◽  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Driving Behavior ◽  
Urban Traffic ◽  
Vehicle Speed ◽  
The European Union

The problem of traffic congestion is particularly acute in urban areas in which the possibilities for the physical increase of capacities are limited or nonexistent. Traffic congestion has a direct impact on the emission, energy efficiency and fuel consumption of personal vehicles. Several projects in the European Union are focused on solving this problem (both at the physical level – automotive industry, as well as at the traffic management level). This paper explores the possibility of the implementation of advanced traffic control systems in urban areas in which driving behavior involves a multitude of stopand-go actions, lower speeds in lower vehicle gears. Since this type of driving behavior affects vehicle fuel consumption and emission, relevant evaluation parameters were defined (queue length, average vehicle speed, etc.). A demonstration corridor in the city of Zagreb was chosen and a simulation model based on the traffic data collected in real traffic situations developed. The basis for further research is laid down to allow the application of the proposed model and adaptive traffic control algorithms to the greater urban traffic network.

Smart Driving System for Improving Traffic Flow

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (7) ◽  
pp. 236
Author(s):  
Rajesh Kumar Gupta ◽  
L. N. Padhy ◽  
Sanjay Kumar Padhi
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Flow ◽  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Adaptive Cruise Control ◽  
Human Perception ◽  
Cruise Control ◽  
Driving System ◽  
V2v Communication ◽  
Traffic Conditions ◽  
Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control

Traffic congestion on road networks is one of the most significant problems that is faced in almost all urban areas. Driving under traffic congestion compels frequent idling, acceleration, and braking, which increase energy consumption and wear and tear on vehicles. By efficiently maneuvering vehicles, traffic flow can be improved. An Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) system in a car automatically detects its leading vehicle and adjusts the headway by using both the throttle and the brake. Conventional ACC systems are not suitable in congested traffic conditions due to their response delay.  For this purpose, development of smart technologies that contribute to improved traffic flow, throughput and safety is needed. In today’s traffic, to achieve the safe inter-vehicle distance, improve safety, avoid congestion and the limited human perception of traffic conditions and human reaction characteristics constrains should be analyzed. In addition, erroneous human driving conditions may generate shockwaves in addition which causes traffic flow instabilities. In this paper to achieve inter-vehicle distance and improved throughput, we consider Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control (CACC) system. CACC is then implemented in Smart Driving System. For better Performance, wireless communication is used to exchange Information of individual vehicle. By introducing vehicle to vehicle (V2V) communication and vehicle to roadside infrastructure (V2R) communications, the vehicle gets information not only from its previous and following vehicle but also from the vehicles in front of the previous Vehicle and following vehicle. This enables a vehicle to follow its predecessor at a closer distance under tighter control.

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